BUFFALO, N.Y. — Ryan Lavarnway, a former catcher for the Yale University baseball team, was elected as the starting catcher for the International League's squad in the 25th Annual Triple-A All-Star Game, which will be played on Wednesday, July 11, at Coca Cola Field in Buffalo, N.Y.

Lavarnway, who currently holds the third-highest batting average in the International League, is leading the Pawtucket Red Sox with a .310 average. He has seven home runs and 18 doubles among his 76 hits following Tuesday's game against Rochester. He is sixth in the International League in on-base percentage (.397) and tied for 10th in the league with his 18 doubles.

Lavarnway is one of a league-high four players from Pawtucket that were named to the International League's All-Star roster.

Lavarnway, who was selected by the Boston Red Sox in the sixth round of the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft, entered the 2012 season ranked as the No. 4 prospect in the Boston Red Sox organization by MLB.com. He played most of the 2011 season in Pawtucket but was called up by the Red Sox and made his Major League debut on Aug. 18, 2011. On Sept. 27, 2011, he became the third player in Major League history to hit multiple homers in his first game started behind the plate.

Lavarnway was named the Red Sox Minor League Offensive Co-Player of the Year in 2010 and 2011, and he was selected as the organization's Minor League Player of the Year by Baseball America following the 2011 season. He finished the 2011 season with 32 home runs, the most by a Red Sox Minor Leaguer since 2004.

The International League's squad will take on a team of All Stars from the Pacific Coast League in the All-Star Game on July 11. With the International League's 3-0 victory at last year's Triple-A All-Star Game, the IL owns an 8-6 lead in the 14 years since the event changed to the current IL vs. PCL format. The winning League this season will once again earn the right to have its champion play as the "home team" at the Gildan Triple-A National Championship Game, which will take place on Tuesday, September 18, in Durham, N.C.

The starting lineup was selected in an online fan vote, which counted as one-third of the overall vote total, along with vote totals from the media (one-third of the vote total) and a vote of club field managers and general managers (one-third of the vote total).

If any player is promoted to the Major Leagues before the Triple-A All-Star Game, they will be replaced on the roster by the International League office.